April 14, 2014 – I recently attended a presentation where our Chaplain, the Rev. Jimmie Schwartz, was to speak about the spiritual facts of aging, particularly as it applies to aging in a continuing care retirement community.

He used Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs to demonstrate how living in a supportive community can lead to a higher level of spiritual awareness.

Most people, he said, focus on the first two tiers of the hierarchy – physiological and safety needs – which include food, water, shelter, good health and financial security.

Higher up on the hierarchy are spiritual components such as belonging, self-esteem and self-actualization, which develop as we age. Through his pastoral counseling, Schwartz has found that people who live in communities where many of their physiological and safety needs are met can reach a higher level of the hierarchy by engaging in a variety of spiritual tasks:

Maintain/rediscover meaning and purpose in life

Keep hope alive

Transcend circumstances and limitations

Cope with loss

Maintain a sense of both connectedness and continuity

Engage in rituals

Express faith and religious beliefs

Remain empowered with a sense of dignity and worth

Be loved and accepted unconditionally

Experience being part of a greater community of individuals with similar needs and interest

Be free to express anger and doubt

Be open to new insights and personal growth

Continue to learn

Sense a nearness of god’s presence and power

Have the opportunity to experience helpfulness by serving others

Conduct an ongoing life review resulting in thanksgiving and gratitude

Experience forgiving and being forgiven

Be at peace

Prepare for dying and death

Schwartz made the observation that the more we have, the more we want, and in his experience the more we have, the sadder we are. A move to a retirement community where one can be supported and engaged by peers will allow an older adult to work toward attaining these higher levels of spirituality.

“Our spirits can go where our bodies no longer have any interest in going,” he said. “Moving to a retirement community guarantees that some of the most basic needs will be met and therefore you can rise to a higher level.”

Something to think about as we redefine ourselves and search for purpose as we grow older.

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Carroll Lutheran Village is a not-for-profit 501(c)3 continuing care retirement community located in a serene setting in the rolling hills just outside Westminster, Maryland within easy reach of Baltimore, Washington, D.C., Annapolis and other cultural centers.
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